Restoration of a Mk1 Vauxhall Cavalier 2.0 GLS Coupe
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I got another couple of minor jobs completed this morning:
1) The HRW switch was bleeding light through to the front, basically so you could see a strip of light between the rocker and the outer casing.Not exactly the end of the world, but irritating and slightly distracting when driving.
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After stripping the switch down I found that the bulb 'shield' that is part of the main switch body had broken away. Presumably, this was as a result of the heat from the bulb and age making it brittle when driving. This shield stops the light going down or forward and ensures that it stays within the confines of the switch. When the HRW is turned on, the rocker then exposes an area of Red clear plastic inside the switch that illuminates the symbol. Not exactly high tech now, but in 1979... well, not really then either to be honest
![:lol:]()
Anyway, I damaged to fashion a new shield out of a small push in Black screw cap/cover and stuck that over the remnants with super glue. Tested it out - all good
![:thumbup]()
2) After sorting the switch, it dawned on me that I had never actually tested the HRW itself yet. Off to the kitchen, boiled the kettle, then put a bowl of hot water on the parcel shelf to mist up the rear screen. Started the engine and flicked the switch - hey presto, the tell tale clear lines either side of the wires started to appear - so all good there too.
Another couple of small wins to me.
Have a great weekend everyone.
1) The HRW switch was bleeding light through to the front, basically so you could see a strip of light between the rocker and the outer casing.Not exactly the end of the world, but irritating and slightly distracting when driving.
After stripping the switch down I found that the bulb 'shield' that is part of the main switch body had broken away. Presumably, this was as a result of the heat from the bulb and age making it brittle when driving. This shield stops the light going down or forward and ensures that it stays within the confines of the switch. When the HRW is turned on, the rocker then exposes an area of Red clear plastic inside the switch that illuminates the symbol. Not exactly high tech now, but in 1979... well, not really then either to be honest
Anyway, I damaged to fashion a new shield out of a small push in Black screw cap/cover and stuck that over the remnants with super glue. Tested it out - all good
2) After sorting the switch, it dawned on me that I had never actually tested the HRW itself yet. Off to the kitchen, boiled the kettle, then put a bowl of hot water on the parcel shelf to mist up the rear screen. Started the engine and flicked the switch - hey presto, the tell tale clear lines either side of the wires started to appear - so all good there too.
Another couple of small wins to me.
Have a great weekend everyone.
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This takes me back to about 1980. Back in the day I melted through two of these switches! They were a poor design in 1977. I bought a third and took the bulb out as on a long journey at night the switch would get very hot. I wonder whether an equivalent LED bulb (if there is one) runs cooler and would stop the melting plastic? Unlike most garages who just butcher the dash around each switch with a screwdriver to pop the switch out, I assume you know the correct way to remove this switch (and the matching fan switch) without dash damage is to put a stiff wire with about a 6 mm tip bent at a right-angle into the small hole in the top of the recess where the switch symbol is and tug? Metal coat hanger wire is perfect.
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This afternoons fix - the heater control cable for Hot/Cold air. This cable has not worked since I had the car, but I have been putting off sorting this out as it didn't seem important until now.
It turns out there was two problems:
1) the selector on top of the heater box was a combination of jammed up with nuts and seeds (presumably from mice or some other inhabitant) and seized... This seemed like the easiest place to start as the cable was detached from the control arm in the cabin (the second problem that I will come on to). After some releasing fluid and clearing away the seeds and nuts, eventually it gave in and start to move fairly well.
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Now to the hard bit:
2) As mentioned above, the semi rigid cable that goes inside the cabin to the Hot/Cold selector lever was detached:
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As you can see, the cable had also become bend/kinked. I guess this was as the result of someone pushing the lever up, trying to select Hot, but the seized mechanism prevented this and bent the cable.
Try as I might, I couldn't manipulate the cable back in, even with the pivot point spring cip removed to give much more movement with the lever. In the end I decided to cut a little slot in the arm to allow it to slot over the cable and this allowed the end fitting to sit back into the circular cut out in the arm. Here it is assembled - you can see the slot I cut on the underside. I am happy this does not affect the strength in any way.
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Before putting everything back together I checked that I had full movement on both levers:
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Happy with that - another job off the 'TO DO' list
![:thumbup]()
It turns out there was two problems:
1) the selector on top of the heater box was a combination of jammed up with nuts and seeds (presumably from mice or some other inhabitant) and seized... This seemed like the easiest place to start as the cable was detached from the control arm in the cabin (the second problem that I will come on to). After some releasing fluid and clearing away the seeds and nuts, eventually it gave in and start to move fairly well.
Now to the hard bit:
2) As mentioned above, the semi rigid cable that goes inside the cabin to the Hot/Cold selector lever was detached:
As you can see, the cable had also become bend/kinked. I guess this was as the result of someone pushing the lever up, trying to select Hot, but the seized mechanism prevented this and bent the cable.
Try as I might, I couldn't manipulate the cable back in, even with the pivot point spring cip removed to give much more movement with the lever. In the end I decided to cut a little slot in the arm to allow it to slot over the cable and this allowed the end fitting to sit back into the circular cut out in the arm. Here it is assembled - you can see the slot I cut on the underside. I am happy this does not affect the strength in any way.
Before putting everything back together I checked that I had full movement on both levers:
Happy with that - another job off the 'TO DO' list
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Another quick fix - I like these!
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Those of you might recall that many moons ago, I reported have smoke coming out of the nearside scuttle vent. As there is nothing else in that area, it had to be coming from the blower fan, so that has sat disconnected for probably a year or more. Spurred on by earlier successes, I decided to take a look at it again (originally it was seized and I had freed it off). It appears as if on reassembly I had not put the left hand side of the motor under the two tabs properly, before doing up the retaining screw. I think the result of this must have been that the front of the fan itself was rubbing against the inside face of the outer cover, causing it to overheat as it was prevented from turning.
After putting it back together properly this time, it works fine - and now smoke...
![:lol:]()
Those of you might recall that many moons ago, I reported have smoke coming out of the nearside scuttle vent. As there is nothing else in that area, it had to be coming from the blower fan, so that has sat disconnected for probably a year or more. Spurred on by earlier successes, I decided to take a look at it again (originally it was seized and I had freed it off). It appears as if on reassembly I had not put the left hand side of the motor under the two tabs properly, before doing up the retaining screw. I think the result of this must have been that the front of the fan itself was rubbing against the inside face of the outer cover, causing it to overheat as it was prevented from turning.
After putting it back together properly this time, it works fine - and now smoke...
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As I continue to go through my 'TO DO' snagging list, the next item on the agenda was to investigate a starting issue I have been experiencing. I think its the battery, but I needed to clean and check a few things first.
Wishing to start with the easy and cheap things first, I thought I would clean all terminals and connections on the starter motor. We started with this:
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And now we have this:
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All of the electrical connections and associated components were thoroughly cleaned with a cloth, then brake cleaner, then finally emery paper to take them back to clean, shiny metal. Naturally I did try to start it and it was absolutely fine, no lag at all.
Time will tell I guess, but I do tend to think that the battery is the main suspect at this point.
I will keep you updated.
Wishing to start with the easy and cheap things first, I thought I would clean all terminals and connections on the starter motor. We started with this:
And now we have this:
All of the electrical connections and associated components were thoroughly cleaned with a cloth, then brake cleaner, then finally emery paper to take them back to clean, shiny metal. Naturally I did try to start it and it was absolutely fine, no lag at all.
Time will tell I guess, but I do tend to think that the battery is the main suspect at this point.
I will keep you updated.
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6,207 Posts
I decided to investigate my brake servo vacuum hose a few days back and decided that it looked suspect enough to change it.
Once it was off - which was quite a scrap in the end, it actually didn't seem to be too bad, - but I didn't do any specific test. Any 41 year old hose, regardless of OEM quality is going to be well and truly past its sell by date
![:lol:]()
The new hose arrived on Thursday and this morning I got it fitted up.
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Does it make a difference to the braking - absolutely no idea, I haven't driven the car yet. It looks better in the engine bay that the old one though...
![:lol:]()
Once it was off - which was quite a scrap in the end, it actually didn't seem to be too bad, - but I didn't do any specific test. Any 41 year old hose, regardless of OEM quality is going to be well and truly past its sell by date
The new hose arrived on Thursday and this morning I got it fitted up.
Does it make a difference to the braking - absolutely no idea, I haven't driven the car yet. It looks better in the engine bay that the old one though...
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Hi everyone,
I hope that you have all been keeping safe and well?
Sorry I haven't been posting recently, its been a difficult time - family stuff mostly.
The good news is that our Son has made some remarkable progress over the last few months and continues to make us proud every day. It's now almost inconceivable to think that this time last year he was in hospital...
One of the main reasons for my absence is that he bought himself a little car about 2-3 months back on the assumption that his driving licence would be returned soon.
As it turns out, his Doctor had lost the form/questionnaire the DVLA had sent to him and we lost 3-4 months, when he could have been on the road further rebuilding his confidence and independence. Sadly, nobody thought to say anything to us either, they all just buried their heads in the sand and blamed each other... Grrrrrr.
Anyway, his car was an 07 plate dented Fiesta, which I decided to take on so that he would (hopefully) have something that would make him even more proud when he go back said licence...
As always, bodywork takes ten times longer than you think and a lot of evenings and weekends drifted by, leaving the Cav stalled... But at the end of the day, our Son and his car were the most important things to me. Thankfully, that all turned out fairly well and his licence should be with him soon - fingers crossed!
That has allowed me to turn my attention back to the Cavalier in the last 7-10 days. As I had to store the Cav outside while the Fiesta was in the garage for its bodywork, water has entered the boot and some mould has formed on the contents and the Black stretch liner I fitted a while back. Its all just surface stuff, so should just wipe away with a mild solution of something appropriate.
The question is/was though, how did the water get in though? - I assume that the two main culprits would have been the boot seal and the rear light clusters. Accordingly, I have sealed up the rear lights with some clear silicon and sourced a replacement seal. As you will see the seal isn't an exact match, but I think it will work out fine once fitted later - hopefully lol
The old/original one - as you can see its pretty tatty to say the least:
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And the new one - sourced from an Ebay seller (£16 delivered for a 4 Metre length):
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Old and new profiles compared:
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Oh I nearly forgot, I also swapped over the head unit for one that is a little more 'high tech' - its a Chinese special, with BT, USB, MP3, Aux In etc and still cost less than £20
![:lol:]()
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Take care everyone - stay safe, stay well.
Ian x
I hope that you have all been keeping safe and well?
Sorry I haven't been posting recently, its been a difficult time - family stuff mostly.
The good news is that our Son has made some remarkable progress over the last few months and continues to make us proud every day. It's now almost inconceivable to think that this time last year he was in hospital...
One of the main reasons for my absence is that he bought himself a little car about 2-3 months back on the assumption that his driving licence would be returned soon.
As it turns out, his Doctor had lost the form/questionnaire the DVLA had sent to him and we lost 3-4 months, when he could have been on the road further rebuilding his confidence and independence. Sadly, nobody thought to say anything to us either, they all just buried their heads in the sand and blamed each other... Grrrrrr.
Anyway, his car was an 07 plate dented Fiesta, which I decided to take on so that he would (hopefully) have something that would make him even more proud when he go back said licence...
As always, bodywork takes ten times longer than you think and a lot of evenings and weekends drifted by, leaving the Cav stalled... But at the end of the day, our Son and his car were the most important things to me. Thankfully, that all turned out fairly well and his licence should be with him soon - fingers crossed!
That has allowed me to turn my attention back to the Cavalier in the last 7-10 days. As I had to store the Cav outside while the Fiesta was in the garage for its bodywork, water has entered the boot and some mould has formed on the contents and the Black stretch liner I fitted a while back. Its all just surface stuff, so should just wipe away with a mild solution of something appropriate.
The question is/was though, how did the water get in though? - I assume that the two main culprits would have been the boot seal and the rear light clusters. Accordingly, I have sealed up the rear lights with some clear silicon and sourced a replacement seal. As you will see the seal isn't an exact match, but I think it will work out fine once fitted later - hopefully lol
The old/original one - as you can see its pretty tatty to say the least:
And the new one - sourced from an Ebay seller (£16 delivered for a 4 Metre length):
Old and new profiles compared:
Oh I nearly forgot, I also swapped over the head unit for one that is a little more 'high tech' - its a Chinese special, with BT, USB, MP3, Aux In etc and still cost less than £20
Take care everyone - stay safe, stay well.
Ian x
It is good in these unfortunate days to hear good stories coming up and shape nicely - in family and in cars! Hope to improve more and to forget what was before. Lets look into brighter future.
I wish you all good health and fortune.
Nice shots of the car and good progress!
I wish you all good health and fortune.
Nice shots of the car and good progress!
I wondered what had happened. Glad to see that you're still around. However. I must wag my finger in your direction. I have no problem with modern technology, but your stereo does look out of place. I would've gone for something more 'period' looking.
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Point taken my friend. Interestingly the 'chrome fronted' one that I had fitted 12-18 months ago, was probably more period looking, but lacked the 'widgets' I really wanted for driving 'comfort'. You should be able to see it in some of the photos in the build thread. Just dont ask me which pages though lol
Take care, stay well.
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Radio fitting is no worse than this supposedly original radio in an Opel Manta on eBay at the moment which is lacking the plastic dash spacer! OPEL MANTA GTE 1988 Dolphin Grey | eBay
I owned a Mk1 Cavalier saloon from 3 years old that always leaked into the boot. Boot seal was OK and I never worked out where the water came from and in the end took the rubber grommets out of the boot floor to let the water drain out.
I owned a Mk1 Cavalier saloon from 3 years old that always leaked into the boot. Boot seal was OK and I never worked out where the water came from and in the end took the rubber grommets out of the boot floor to let the water drain out.
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After letting the combined filler/sealer used around the rear light clusters to set overnight (this was the same stuff I used on the headlight glass - see above somewhere), I set about replacing the old boot seal rubber.
I am very happy with the fit and profile
![:thumbup]()
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Plus, I had loads left over for spare...
![:lol:]()
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Have a good day everyone.
I am very happy with the fit and profile
Plus, I had loads left over for spare...
Have a good day everyone.
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6,207 Posts
Time for some more Cavalier work...
A few months ago, I bought a replacement boot lid from a club member. While the one on the car is 'OK', I have never been completely happy with the weld repairs to the trailing edge. So when this one popped up for £20 I grabbed it while I could and squirreled it away for a later day - and that day was today.
After a few hours of sanding, minor filling of chips and scratches, then a dusting of primer I have this:
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And the inside edge/lip is in really good condition too, with only a tiny amount of surface rust I had to deal with:
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Its too cold to paint it, so I will wrap it in cardboard and wait until the spring before I get into that.
![:thumbup]()
Enjoy your weekend everyone.
A few months ago, I bought a replacement boot lid from a club member. While the one on the car is 'OK', I have never been completely happy with the weld repairs to the trailing edge. So when this one popped up for £20 I grabbed it while I could and squirreled it away for a later day - and that day was today.
After a few hours of sanding, minor filling of chips and scratches, then a dusting of primer I have this:
And the inside edge/lip is in really good condition too, with only a tiny amount of surface rust I had to deal with:
Its too cold to paint it, so I will wrap it in cardboard and wait until the spring before I get into that.
Enjoy your weekend everyone.
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2,087 Posts
Very good investment as it looks mint like now on your pics. 
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6,207 Posts
Thanks, yes it is in very good condition.Very good investment as it looks mint like now on your pics.
If it had been stated that it was a boot lid for an Opel Manta Coupe then it would have been listed anywhere between £50-100
Even though it is exactly the same item, say its for a Cavalier Coupe and some people struggle to sell them - go figure.
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